This invention relates to a photo and pressure sensitive recording medium adapted for reproduction or recording of an image.
There has been proposed a photo and pressure sensitive medium capable of recording an image, which comprises a base sheet and a layer formed thereon including combination of microcapsules each containing a dye precursor and a photo-curable resin, and a color developing agent reactable with the dye precursor to develop color. When the recording sheet is exposed to light, the microcapsules existing on a particular area exposed to the light are cured. The remaining uncured microcapsules are ruptured by applying pressure thereto to flow out the dye precursor contained therein, which will then react with the color developing agent to reproduce a given photo-image on the recording sheet. Such conventional recording sheet of so-called self-development type is shown in the U.S. Pat. No. 4,440,846, for example.
Another type of the photo and pressure sensitive recording sheet has also been known, that is of a transfer type. The recording sheet of a transfer type consists of two separate sheets, one coated with the microcapsules each containing the dye precursor and the photo-curable resin and the other with the color developing agent. The microcapsule sheet is exposed to light to produce thereon a latent image, which is developed to a photo image on the developer sheet by bringing the latter sheet into close contact with the former sheet, by way of pressure rollers. Such conventional recording sheet is disclosed in the U.S. Pat. No. 4,399,209, for example.
Using such photo and pressure sensitive recording sheet of self development type or transfer type as a copy paper in copying machines, thus providing a clear reproduced image with definite contour, as in electrophotographic reproduction. According to the prior art technique, however, it is not possible to develop photo-images on general-purpose material such as ordinary paper, film, panel or cloth.